These photos are the rare exception to my preference of black and white over color. I made black and white versions of all these photos... but the color really makes them so much better.
This shoot was a prime example poor planning. Around noon that day Sarah sent me a message telling me she wanted to shoot. ASAP. I spent a few minutes coming up with a concept and we planned for a 6pm start. I figured I would be able to get into NAU's studio, grab some C-Stands, some lights, some softboxes, and we'd be good to go.
Turns out that the studios close at 4:30 on Fridays and the building closes at 5. Something I probably should have known, but didn't.
No big deal - I have an access card to the building so I can get in. I could not, however, get into the studios. Right away that means no C-Stands, no lights, no softboxes. I could have let that be the end of my shoot right there. Instead I called my friend Casey Myrick who I met in one of my photo classes. He recently acquired a set of Profoto monolights and was happy to assist me and to bring his gear. I definitely could not have done this shoot without him, or his lights. He held the key light and acted as a Voice Activated Light stand for me. We set the fill on a blanket on the ground. He also expected we'd be shooting in the studio, so he didn't bring any light modifiers. We shot bare-bulb.
I purchased the hat and the cigar (Cohiba Limited) specifically for the shoot. I also added a 10 foot USB extension cable to my gear bag. It allows me to shoot tethered to Aperture so I can check focus and exposure on my 15" monitor instead of the 3" LCD on the back of my camera. Shooting tethered is something I will do as often as possible in the future for several reasons: I get instant feedback about my histogram (exposure) and focus. It also automatically stores the files on my HDD, so I instantly have the files on my CF card and on the computer. If I face the computer the right way, the assistant, model and hair/makeup artist all know what the photo looks like instantly and they can make any adjustments they need to make.
Speaking of hair/makeup, the lovely Angelica Olmedo was my go-to girl for this shoot and I plan on asking for her services in the future as well.
Tomorrow - another finished project that I'm quite happy with.
Until then, have a great Monday!
